After two weeks of staring at Hollywood stars and all that comes with them — hot fashions, toned bodies and some disturbing facelifts — it's great to be home hugging my husband and catching up with our own celebrities. For instance ...

It's official! Fifth Harmony, the all-girl group featuring San Antonio singer Ally Brooke that made the final three of “The X Factor,” has inked a deal with Epic Records and Simon Cowell's own Syco Music.

On Twitter, Cowell said of his female quintet: “To all the harmonizers. Thank you for all the support. Happy to confirm we have signed Fifth Harmony ... Maybe it's time for a large dose of girl power.”

Brooke's reaction? “OMG!!” she said on Twitter the other day. “I'm so looking forward to working with the great Mr. L.A. Reid and of course my uncle Simon!”

It also was a kick hearing Fifth Harmony's contagious rendition of Ellie Goulding's “Anything Could Happen,” which repeatedly played during breaks in Fox sessions at the winter TV press gathering.

The rapier wit of Jeremy Irons supplied needed laughter in the weary final days. He came for a PBS session for a new series, “Shakespeare Uncovered” (at 9 p.m. Fridays), which features six actors, including Irons, talking about their portrayals of the Bard's most memorable characters.

His merry digs at the popular “Downton Abbey” brought the biggest laughs. With Shakespeare, “it's practice, practice, practice,” he said. “You can't sort of mutter it in a sort of 'Downton Abbey' way.” Later, he quipped that “Downton” is like the Ford Fiesta of British drama. “A Ford Fiesta will get you there and give you a good time. But an Aston Martin ... ”

He eventually confessed he actually had never seen “Downton” and just made the remarks to “stir the pot.” “I'm conscious that you've all been here for 14 weeks (actually days, though it felt like weeks),” he explained, “and I think we just need to keep you awake.”

The best moment? When I approached the dashing actor afterward and shared thoughts on Showtime's “Lolita” of 1997 — which starred Irons and was partly filmed in San Antonio — and he warmly took my hand. Sigh.

Urban and S.A.

When I introduced myself to Keith Urban at a Fox party, the new “American Idol” judge brightened. “Beautiful part of the world, San Antonio,” the country artist said in his charming Aussie accent. The Alamo City, as you well know, was among this season's audition locales. “We spent two lovely days there,” he said of his S.A. stop, when he and fellow judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Randy Jackson determined which contestants here were golden ticket-worthy.

Incidentally, tonight's “Idol” auditions take us to Charlotte, N.C. — you know, the scene of the infamous knock-down, drag-out between Carey and Minaj.

Bell's baby

I stopped to chat with a very pregnant Kristen Bell (“Veronica Mars,” “House of Lies”) and she, too, perked up at the mention of San Antonio. After all, her dad, WOAI News Director Tom Bell, lives here.

So, when will he see his grandbaby? “In the spring,” she said. However, she wouldn't budge when I asked her the girl-or-boy question. “We,” she said, meaning herself and “Parenthood” actor Dax Shepard, “have to keep some secrets.”

Quaid's surprising accessory

Houston native Dennis Quaid, looking every inch the cowboy at the “Vegas” set in Santa Clarita, Calif., talked about how his Texas upbringing was fine preparation for his role as legendary Las Vegas sheriff Ralph Lamb in the CBS drama. “My grandfather had a farm in East Texas; I was around a lot of horses and went to rodeos. I basically learned how to fall off a lot, which was good preparation,” Quaid said.

Wearing worn cowboy boots that once belonged to the real Lamb, Quaid completed the picture by saying, “I'm old school. I stay off the Internet as much as possible.”

However, what didn't quite fit his “old school” image was the thing he kept puffing on: an electronic cigarette. “It's a different way to smoke, a safer way,” Quaid said, adding: “There's no secondhand smoke for anybody.”